Janaína Nazzari Gomes | College of Arts

Janaína Nazzari Gomes

Janaína Nazzari Gomes, research at the University of Guelph in FSL Education and Francophone migration
Assistant Professor, French and Integrated Studies
School of Languages and Literatures
French Studies
Email: 
jnazzari@uoguelph.ca
Phone number: 
(519) 824-4120, ext. 53925
Office: 
Room 254, MacKinnon Building

Janaína Nazzari Gomes is a linguist and sociolinguist whose work bridges education, language, and migration. As a woman, an immigrant, and a plurilingual speaker, she has learned to live, study, and work in French and English—languages she adopted in addition to her native Portuguese. She is also comfortable in Spanish and has some knowledge of Italian and Polish. These experiences shape both her research and teaching, and they allow her to connect with students and colleagues from diverse backgrounds. She welcomes opportunities for collaboration and encourages students interested in language, education, and migration to reach out.



Her research focuses primarily on French as a second language (FSL) teaching and learning, alongside the sociolinguistic dimensions of migration. She is the principal investigator of two funded projects: one on linguistic insecurity among non-native FSL teachers in Canada and Brazil (MITACS-AUF), and another on the linguistic barriers faced by Francophone migrants in minority settings in Canada (SSHRC). She also collaborates on projects examining social barriers faced by FSL teachers in minority contexts, sociolinguistic representations among Brazilian immigrants in Canada, and the design of plurilingual teaching tasks. As a new faculty member at the University of Guelph, she is eager to involve graduate and undergraduate students in her projects and research networks.



Janaína has taught French language, pedagogy, linguistics, and sociolinguistics to a wide range of learners, from children and newcomers to undergraduate and graduate students. At the University of Guelph, she teaches French language and pedagogy courses with a strong emphasis on experiential learning, as well as courses in applied linguistics and sociolinguistics. Her teaching practice is informed by her research and by her own experience as a plurilingual learner, aiming to create inclusive classrooms that validate diverse linguistic repertoires.



Beyond research and teaching, Janaína is deeply committed to service and community engagement. She has collaborated with organizations such as the Alliance des femmes de la francophonie canadienne and the Centre de la francophonie des Amériques, contributing to projects that support francophone communities across Canada and the Americas. In the next years, she will be strengthening these networks and engaging with community partners in Guelph and across Southeastern Ontario.

Postdoctoral Fellowship in Sociolinguistics (2022–2025) - Official Languages and Bilingualism Institute, Faculty of Arts, University of Ottawa, Canada

Ph.D. in Applied Linguistics (2016–2020) - Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

Dissertation: “L’appropriation du français comme langue non maternelle : une question de frontières.”

Doctoral Research Fellowship (2018) - Department of Human and Social Sciences, Saint-Boniface University, Canada

M.A. in Applied Linguistics (2014–2016) - Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

Dissertation: “Communiquer en langue seconde et étrangère : une réflexion sur l’appropriation des langues à la lumière de la théorie saussurienne.”

Master’s Research Fellowship (2015) - Department of French as a Second and Foreign Language, Sorbonne Nouvelle University, France

B.A. in French Education and Linguistics (2006–2012) - Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

Thesis: “Le sujet énonciateur en langue seconde et étrangère : une constitution possible ?”

Janaína Nazzari Gomes uses linguistics and sociolinguistics to conduct research on French as a Second Language (FSL) education and Francophone migration, with a particular focus on how language practices, ideologies, and policies shape teaching, learning, and integration. Her research interests include: 

  • Plurilingualism and plurilingual pedagogies

  • Linguistic insecurity and linguistic security

  • Language ideologies and power relations

  • Social barriers related to language (legitimacy, discrimination, marginalization)

  • Decolonial and critical approaches to language education

  • Francophone migration and settlement in minority contexts

  • Linguistic landscapes and their role in identity and integration

  • Teacher education and professional development in FSL/FLE contexts

  • Heritage languages preservation and linguistic justice

Publications

Upcoming

  • La (socio)linguistique en cours de français langue seconde et étrangère: une question de frontières. Appris, forthcoming December 2025.

  • With Luisa Veronis: L’immigration au Canada: enjeux et concepts de base. Collection 101, University of Ottawa Press, in preparation.

  • La didactique du français seconde et étrangère : un carrefour qui comprend théories et idéologies. To be submitted to Circula – Revue d’idéologies linguistiques.

  • When French is not enough: Language ideologies and attitudes among recent Francophone immigrants in minority settings in Canada. Submitted to Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development.

  • Positionnalités marginales : la formation initiale d’enseignant.e.s de français en milieu minoritaire à travers une épistémologie mobile et plurilingue. Submitted to Enjeux et sociétés.

Former

  • Gomes, J., Dorneles, M., Freisleben, L. C., & Wesley de M. (2023). L’insécurité linguistique chez des locuteurs de français langue étrangère: une étude exploratoire. Francophonies d’Amérique, 55, 49–77.

  • Gomes, J. (2022). Que peut la sociolinguistique apporter à la didactique du français langue étrangère?Synergies Mexique, 12, 27–38.

  • Gomes, J. (2021). Le sujet parlant dans la didactique du français langue étrangère : une question d’hétérogénéité et singularité linguistiques. Synergies Brésil, 14, 191–200.

  • Gomes, J. (2019). Da importância da diversidade linguística na conformação do conceito saussuriano de língua.Revista Leitura, 1, 13–32.

  • Gomes, J. (2017). La francophonie qui se reconnaît: les actions du Centre de la francophonie des Amériques et l’avènement d’une identité francophone continentale. Synergies Brésil, 12, 21–34.

  • Gomes, J. (2016). O erro na expressão em língua estrangeira: um signo que anuncia apropriação. Non Plus, 9, 176–189.

  • Milano, L., Stawinski, A., & Gomes, J. (2016). Por uma noção de escuta a partir da herança saussuriana.Eutomia, 1, 92–104.

  • Gomes, J., & Surreaux, L. (2013). Être sujet en langue étrangère : une constitution possible? Non Plus, 2, 68–81.